Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. Purchases 2,094 Shares of BlackRock $BLK

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group boosted its BlackRock stake by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, adding 2,094 shares to reach 22,851 shares valued at about $24.46 million.
• BlackRock insiders sold shares: President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares and CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares in late April, reducing their direct holdings.
• The company continues to post solid operating results, with Q1 earnings and revenue beating expectations, and it recently announced a $5.73 quarterly dividend payable June 23.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Free Report) by 10.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,851 shares of the asset manager's stock after buying an additional 2,094 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in BlackRock were worth $24,458,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BLK. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Birchbrook Inc. bought a new position in BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new position in BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new position in BlackRock during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Goodman Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in BlackRock during the third quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors own 80.69% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, President Robert Kapito sold 8,739 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,056.60, for a total value of $9,233,627.40. Following the transaction, the president directly owned 210,186 shares in the company, valued at $222,082,527.60. This trade represents a 3.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Laurence Fink sold 33,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,050.55, for a total value of $35,613,645.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 230,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $242,168,583.80. This represents a 12.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.92% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

More BlackRock News

Here are the key news stories impacting BlackRock this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock is expanding its ETF lineup with new thematic products, including a space-focused fund in Europe/UK and a planned income-paying Bitcoin ETF, reinforcing its leadership in fast-growing areas of asset management. How Investors Are Reacting To BlackRock (BLK) Expanding Into Space ETFs And Digital Assets
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that BlackRock is seeking to buy at least $5 billion of SpaceX IPO shares highlight its willingness to back high-profile alternative assets and could support fee-generating opportunities if the deal moves forward. BlackRock seeks to buy at least $5 billion in SpaceX IPO shares, WSJ reports
• Positive Sentiment: BlackRock continues to dominate Bitcoin ETF flows with Fidelity, suggesting its crypto products are capturing the bulk of investor demand in the U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF market. BlackRock and Fidelity Dominate U.S. Bitcoin ETF Flows
• Neutral Sentiment: The Supreme Court’s ruling shielding investment funds from some shareholder lawsuits is broadly supportive for the asset-management industry, though the direct impact on BlackRock is limited. Supreme Court Shields Investment Funds From Shareholder Lawsuits
• Neutral Sentiment: Financial stocks were firmer in afternoon trading, creating a generally supportive backdrop for BlackRock, although the move appears driven by sector rotation rather than company-specific news. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Rise Late Afternoon
• Negative Sentiment: Some coverage noted BlackRock’s crypto portfolio declined by more than $12 billion early in June and that its Bitcoin holdings were sold while Ethereum was accumulated, which could raise questions about near-term digital-asset mark-to-market performance. BlackRock crypto portfolio falls by over $12 billion in early June

BlackRock Stock Performance

Shares of BLK stock opened at $1,017.36 on Friday. BlackRock has a 52 week low of $917.39 and a 52 week high of $1,219.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $1,038.39 and a 200-day moving average of $1,051.51. The company has a quick ratio of 4.09, a current ratio of 4.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market cap of $157.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.42.

BlackRock (NYSE:BLK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The asset manager reported $12.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $12.40 by $0.13. BlackRock had a return on equity of 14.74% and a net margin of 24.40%.The company had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.56 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $9.64 EPS. BlackRock's quarterly revenue was up 27.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that BlackRock will post 52.8 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a $5.73 dividend. This represents a $22.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. BlackRock's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BLK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,351.00 to $1,199.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,200.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,290.00 to $1,310.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of BlackRock from $1,181.00 to $1,313.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of BlackRock from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, BlackRock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,264.61.

BlackRock Profile

BlackRock, Inc is a global investment management firm that provides a broad range of products and services to institutional, intermediary and individual investors. Its core activities include portfolio management across active and index strategies, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) under the iShares brand, fixed income, equity and multi-asset solutions, as well as alternatives such as private equity, real estate and infrastructure. The firm also offers cash management and liquidity solutions and retirement-focused products designed for defined contribution and defined benefit investors.

In addition to traditional investment management, BlackRock is known for its technology and risk management capabilities, most prominently its Aladdin platform, which combines portfolio management, trading and risk analytics and is used both internally and licensed to external clients.

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